Would You Really Want To Prognosticate?

I have often wondered whether or not I would want some sort of psychic ability such as prognostication or the ability to contact the dead. On one hand, it would be awesome to have an ability shared by only a few others, but it also seems like a curse to many.

Prognostication is one that would seem to be more trouble than its worth. The visions can come without warning often feeling like a migraine. They are never complete and instead are just flashes of pictures and feelings.

If you can piece together the event, then you have to decide what you are going to do about it. Prognostications are hardly ever 100 percent accurate, so if this is something that will have a significant impact on someone, then you risk not only your credibility, but also being implicated in the happening.

If you do nothing and something happens, then you feel like you should have done something. Also, what if you see something about your own future. Would you feel a sense of foreboding if it is something bad or would you work hard to change it. I don't think I would want prognostication for anything.

The future is supposed to be unknown and having that kind of knowledge and the tenuous thread that gave it to you, would be more than a burden than anything else. Sure, let me see the dead...as long as they looked normal...but lets keep the future in the dark.

The Future of Prediction

There was a time when psychic abilities and future prediction were wrapped in mystery. It was something that not many people talked about and very few advertised. That's not the case today.

You can't turn on the television without seeing a show about hunting ghosts, talking to the dead or following a psychic around for the day. These people have stopped being pariahs of society and turned into the newest reality celebrities.

Does coming out in the psychic world cheapen you? There are many people that feel these gifts are sacred and should not be exploited for personal gain. People think these abilities should only be used to help people and not to sell books or line your pockets with cash.

I have to admit that when I watch television shows where psychics are possessed by spirits in over dramatic ways that are obviously fake or when spirits have so much activity in a single episode that you know that producers are helping them out, it cheapens the experience.

There have been charlatans in the psychic world for decades, but people in the know, knew who has real and who as a fake. Charlatans advertised their abilities and had lavish shows shooting “ectoplasm” out their nose. I guess psychics have the same right to exploit their abilities as anyone else. It's just disheartening. I think the future of prediction and psychic abilities will have a big neon sign on the Vegas strip. In today's world, everyone is a celebrity if you're willing to put yourself in front of the camera.

The Importance of Meditation

I have talked before about how mental abilities require extensive concentration and focus in order for them to bloom. Without a clear mind, your abilities can be clouded and diluted by the background noise in your mind.

This goes for any ability from telepathy to future prediction. Without that clarity of mind, your abilities won't develop as they should. One of the most common ways to produce this clarity is through various types of meditation.

Meditation is a centuries old technique that teaches people to clear their mind and focus. Without that constant din in your head, you can work on focusing your thoughts on your own mental abilities. There are many different ways to meditate from classical to transcendental. There are people that will offer to teach your for money, books are available and countless web pages to read.

However you choose, the key to meditation is practice. After a lifetime of being conditioned to have a crowded mind, leaving it all behind and embracing the quiet won't be easy. It takes time and patience to understand the methods of meditation.

Many people try it only to quit when it doesn't come easily to them. We live in a world of car horns, construction and conflicting thoughts. It is a time of chaos and only by adhering to the techniques for the long haul will you be able to finally master your own mind.

The limit of your abilities is only gauged by your dedication to develop it.

Curious About The Future?

There are countless theories about why a person can sense the future and predict certain events. They range from the supernatural to simply analyzing the variables and making an educated or intuitive guess.

Regardless of the reason, many people feel the need to seek out the future. Most people are content with not knowing what's going to happen to them or other people. They understand that life has an element of chance from waking up in the morning to getting onto a plane and have no problem leaving the fates alone.

What causes a person to seek out those who perceive the future. They spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars to find out answers that they will eventually know anyway. There are three main reasons: fear, curiosity and confidence. Charlatans realize this and use it to their advantage, letting clients hear what they want.

When someone asks if “Fred” is the love of her life, it's obvious she wants “Fred” to be the love of her life. This is an example of confidence. They already know or believe the answer, but just want some reassurance from a person.

Curiosity comes from those that don't have a stake in the answer, but are curious about future prediction. These people typically ask about global events, sports games, etc. The answers don't relate directly to them, but they can keep an eye on the news to gauge how right the medium is.

Fear is the most powerful of the reasons. A person's fear can cause them to make rash and illogical decisions such as give a lot of money. These people often ask about death or some other major matter because they are afraid of what might happen. “Will I beat the cancer?” “Will my daughter survive childbirth.”

Predicting The Future Doesn't Mean Reading Minds As Well

Many people believe that there is a single type of psychic ability and that they every psychic has it. While many people with mental abilities have more than one, the truth is that they are no different that other natural abilities.

When a person has a natural ability, such as drawing or writing, they excel as they use that ability more. Some people are lucky enough to be good at more than one ability and they excel at many things. It's not different for psychic abilities.

Someone that can see the future or predict the outcome of events doesn't mean they also see dead people or can read your mind. Future prediction is a psychic ability and communicating with spirits is another. There are countless psychic abilities from the ability to leave the body to understanding a person's true emotions.

Some people do have the ability to do more than one such as empathy and communicating with spirits. People also have different strengths and through practice can improve their natural abilities and the same is true of psychic abilities.

People that suppress their natural abilities may eventually lose them. They may not be able to control it and only get the occasional flash. If you use your ability more and more, then it will get stronger. It's like a muscle that gets stronger the more you use it. Future prediction is a bit different given that often people can't control it, but the best predictors are known for their accuracy.

The Many Universe Theory

Some may say that predicting the future depends on your particular reality. There is a theory that states that there are an infinite number of universes. This roughly translates that every decision ever made creates a new universe.

For example, when you woke up this morning and chose eggs for breakfast your time line continued on with that decision. In another universe, you woke up and had sausage and that created an entirely different time line.

When you get to the car, you turn to county station, but in another universe, you picked a rock station. Hollywood has used this theory for the television show “Sliders” and has been used in many different movies through the years.

In some universes, life may never have evolved on Earth and in another the Earth could have been destroyed by an asteroid. You could be a hair dresser in one universe and a famous designer in another. These is an interesting conundrum for revealing the future. Anyone that can tap into these universes may see outcomes to certain universes, but that may not be the case for the universe that person is in.

The future is supposed to be a mystery, but the outcome of every decision you have ever made creates a universe. So in some universes you got the job and in others you didn't. It's all about choice, but when you take into account the many universe theory, your choices have little consequence and so does the future. Every thing that can happen...has.

Future Seeing: A Perplexing Paradox

"Knowing the future creates an interesting paradox, does knowing the future automatically change it"

People should always take anyone that says the can see the future with a grain of salt. Regardless of the method, the future is a complex animal and even knowing a small part of it can lead to a very different outcome.

The ones that truly can see the future or at least get a glimpse are more than up front to tell you that what they see is only one interpretation. The future is fickle. A change in a single decision can create far reaching changes.

When a person tells you about an event that hasn't happened yet, then you have created a change in the time stream and reality. Some events are so large and far reaching that knowing something about may not be able to change it.

Having a vision of World War III doesn't mans there is anything you can do to stop it. Something like has so many thing pulling reality towards it that the knowledge of a single person may not be enough to stop it. Especially since the knowledge people glean of the future is often confusing by itself. It's just a few fleeting glimpses and then nothing.

Knowing the future creates an interesting paradox, does knowing the future automatically change it. I mean, if someone told you that you were going to be hit by a car at 1:45 p.m. on Tuesday, then you would make a point to stay in.

Also, does that mean you have beaten fate or only postponed the inevitable.  

Beware the Cold Read

"Many of the charlatans used a technique called cold reading to create a custom future using cues from your answers"

Predicting the future is an easy business for frauds and con artists looking to make a quick buck. The future hasn't happened, so how can we call them on something they predicted that hasn't happened yet. If you do, they just say that knowing the future has somehow changed it.

Many of you probably remember the psychic phone fad from the 90's. You could call a 900 number and get a personal read from a “professional psychic” who could answer all your questions and predict your future.

Many of the charlatans used a technique called cold reading to create a custom future using cues from your answers to questions, tension in your voice and even body language for personal visits. The key to a cold read is to provide general information that actually pertains to most people. That's why they call it cold.

They tell you that you are a person of great creativity. Well, everyone is creative about something in their life. They tell you that there is something you are afraid of. Well, everyone is generally afraid of something.

They take how you react to these questions and then go with it. For example, “Is there something you are afraid of?” “Um, well, there are laying a few people off at my job and that worried me a little.” Oh, Yes. I see a change in your job situation in the future.”

That could mean anything from a layoff, promotion or new coffee maker. You know you have the real thing when they get specific about people, places and times.

Clairvoyance and Sensory Deprivation

 

Psychics and other practitioners of extra sensory perception have been using sensory deprivation as a way to enhance and amplify their talents. This is definitely not something new and is based on sound scientific theory.

It has been proven that when a person loses one sense, such as hearing or sight, that the body enhances the other senses. So someone who lost their sight, gain more acute hearing, etc. The theory follows that if you deprive the body of all of the senses, then it might enhance the one sense that is left... the sixth. In a full sensory deprivation experience the subject is in total darkness and their ears are covered or they are placed in a completely silent environment.

They are also suspended in a solution that keeps them buoyant and with a temperature that is as close to their natural body temperature. This fools the body into thinking it's floating in nothingness. People often use this for meditation, but it can also be used to increase sensory abilities.

Not everyone can afford a sensory deprivation tank, but eliminating as many senses as possible through blindfolding and ear muffs can also increase sensory awareness. This isn't just for future prediction either, it can used with any type of ability such as astral projection. The benefits of sensory deprivation have been debated.

People who lose a sense permanently take years for their other senses to compensate, but we expect sensory deprivation to create this enhancement instantly.  

The Mayan Calendar

 

When it comes to predicting the future, there has been much talk about the ancient Mayan calendar because is ends in 2012... maybe. For some reason, everyone believes that because this calendar ends that it means the end of the world.

Why? Sure, as far as ancient civilizations go, the Mayans has a pretty good grasp of astronomy. So much so that they developed a calendar based on the stars. That's great, but there were many civilizations that had a decent grasp of astronomy.

The Celts and Egyptians all had knowledge of astronomy and used in their religion. Did the Mayan think about their calendar ending a thousands years after it was developed? No! We consider ourselves advanced, but we sure didn't think about the 2000 bug did we.

The thought that a civilization that could be beaten by a couple Spaniards with some sharp sticks could predict the end of the world hundreds of years into the future just sounds ridiculous. Now there's theories that the Mayan calendar doesn't even end in 2012. If we can't figure out the Mayan calendar using supercomputers and advanced mathematics, do you really think the Mayan's had a great grasp of it?

I don't know about you, but I'm not going to be sweating 2012. If the world ends through some freak astronomical anomaly, then you can say I told you so. If it doesn't end and 2013 come without a hitch, then can we please lay off the end of the world predictions for a while.

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